Electrical Safety Services in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Unfortunately we often find a gap in safety in the most unfortunate of ways.  We experience a significant or catastrophic event which makes apparent to us the what been hidden for so long.  Electricity is just that.  Significant but silent power when unleashed is explosive, fire prone, dangerous, and can kill without a sound.  No different how life teaches us all the national electric code has learned from many years of hard lessons and tries to save others the same misfortune. 

We are here to keep your family safe.   The code formally changes every 3 years but each iteration increases a homeowner’s safety and protection.  Even if your home is relatively new it still may lack critical protection from current technology that can benefit you.

Electricity and water don’t mix.  Anytime you have these systems near each other special precautions are required to keep them apart, especially when your loved ones are near.  BIG Family knows about the life saving measures in current code and can implement proper protection.  Ground Fault protection is critical to keeping you from getting shocked.  And is sensibly required in many locations throughout a home.  We have the tools to test and ensure these systems reliably work when you need them most.

How

Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter’s or GFCI for short, is a device in the form of an outlet or a circuit breaker has saved countless lives.  It detects current that is flowing to ground and turns itself off. What this means is that if YOU are shorting out an energized circuit to ground, YOU are being shocked or electrocuted, and the GFCI will turn OFF, thereby saving your life!
If your Home does not have these GFCI type outlets in the Bathrooms, Kitchen, Garage, and Outside, call BIG Family today and we’ll get them installed for you.

Smoke detectors are required in every home.  Additionally, new codes have required Carbon Monoxide (aka Silent Killer) in certain areas.  These devices are required in specific area to alert family members about dangers before they become life threatening.  These devices are not only usually battery powered, but AC powered also and should be tested regularly for proper operation.   Additionally they generally wear out after about 10 years due to dust and other particulate clogging up the sensors.

Fire Guard…Over 73000 Home Fires each Year in the United States caused by faulty electrical wiring and arcing according to the Electrical Safety Foundation. This device is currently available in circuit breaker form.

It detects the unique characteristics of an electrical arc, the frequency and “bounce” of the Harmonics, and after about 1/10th of a second, it shuts off the power to the entire circuit.

This invaluable device is saving a lot of home owner’s lives and property.

If you want more information or would like to have them installed in your home call us at BIG Family.

Why

Aluminum is not as conductive as say copper or gold or silver. Because it has a higher resistance, and because of its properties, aluminum expands and contracts under loads significantly more than copper. As the “load” or amperage increases on the conductor, it expands. When the load decreases, the conductor contracts back to its original size. This constant expansion and contraction, combined with oxidation, cause the terminations in wire connectors and on devices such as outlets and switches to become loose. When loose, they will arc. And arcing will eventually lead to a fire.  That is why small aluminum conductors make a poor substitute for copper.  For larger appliances and large “feeders”, this does not pose as big a problem.

Why?

The connection methods for the larger wires take this expansion and contraction into account. Additionally, anti-oxidant compounds are required on these connections.

FPE Circuit Breakers

Federal Pacific electric was a large manufacturer of electrical breaker boxes or load centers and panel boards from the 1960 to 1980 era. Problems arose from these products culminating in lawsuits in the early 1980’s and the withdrawal of the product line from the market by its producer. The consumer product safety commission has produced several case studies of the products and their hazards.

After nearly 30 years in the electrical construction and service industries, I highly recommend if you have FPE (Federal Pacific) breakers, breaker boxes or load centers or panel boards, that you get these replaced immediately. They are well-documented fire hazards and have been proven to “lock on” during an overload condition, just the opposite of what a breaker should do.